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From the Ethics of the Fathers: "He [Rabbi Tarfon] used to say, it is not incumbent upon you to complete the task, but you are not exempt from undertaking it."

Friday, October 14, 2016

Romania: Lawsuit Launched to Stop Bucharest Mega-Mosque - Soeren Kern

by Soeren Kern

"Romania is not a Turkish province."

The original deal called for a
"mutual exchange" in which Romania would build a new Orthodox Church in
Istanbul, while Turkey would build the mosque in Bucharest. In July
2015, however, Prime Minister Victor Ponta revealed that the Romanian
government had abandoned the Istanbul church project because it is "not
allowed under Turkish law." Ponta approved the Bucharest mosque project
anyway, saying it was a multicultural symbol of Romania's acceptance of
the Muslim community.

Ponta's decision to approve the mosque, which will mimic
Ottoman-era architecture, was greeted with outrage in a country that was
under Ottoman Turkish domination for nearly five centuries until 1877.

"This plan is not about worship, it is about marking the
territory of their authority through a monument." – Ozgur Kazim Kivanc, a
Turkish activist opposed to Erdoğan's destruction of public commons to
build mosques.

"Once Islam enters a land, that land becomes Islamic and Muslims
have the duty to liberate it someday. Spain, for example, is Islamic
land, and so is Eastern Europe: Romania, Albania, Macedonia, Serbia,
Kosovo and Bosnia..." – Omar Bakri Muhammad, a prominent Sunni Islamist
cleric.

"We consider the disposal of free land which, ironically,
belonged to the family of Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu, who was
beheaded by the Turks on August 15, 1714, to be a betrayal of the
Romanian people." – Pending lawsuit calling on the court to annul the
government's grant of free city land for the mosque project.

Opponents of a proposed Turkish mega-mosque in Romania's capital,
Bucharest, have filed a lawsuit against the government in an effort to
halt the project. The court is set to begin hearing the case on October
14.

The lawsuit
seeks to reverse a June 2015 decision by the Romanian prime minister at
the time, Victor Ponta, to approve construction of what could become
the largest mosque in Eastern Europe — second only to the Blue Mosque in
Istanbul — on a large tract of city-owned land in northern Bucharest.

The property, valued at more than four million euros ($4.4 million),
is being provided for free by the Romanian government, while the
construction costs, estimated at three million euros ($3.3 million), are
being paid for by Turkey.

Ponta said the mosque will reap economic benefits for Romania because
Turkey is the country's leading non-EU trading partner. The mosque's
critics, including an array of Romanian academics, historians,
politicians, anti-immigration groups and even some Muslims, counter that
not only will it increase Turkish influence over Romania, it will also
encourage Muslim immigration to the country.

The Bucharest mosque is the result
of more than a decade of talks between the Romanian and Turkish
governments. The original deal called for a "mutual exchange" in which
Romania would build a new Orthodox Church in Istanbul, while Turkey
would build the mosque in Bucharest.

In July 2015, however, Ponta revealed
that the Romanian government had abandoned the Istanbul church project
because it is "not allowed under Turkish law." Ponta approved the
Bucharest mosque project anyway, saying it was a multicultural symbol of
Romania's acceptance of the Muslim community.

Ponta's decision to approve the mosque, which will mimic Ottoman-era
architecture, was greeted with outrage in a country that was under
Ottoman Turkish domination for nearly five centuries until 1877.

"Turkey attempts a symbolic conquest of Europe through these mosques," said
Tudor Ionescu, leader of the anti-immigration Noua Dreaptă (New Right)
party. "I don't know why we are the recipients of such a 'blessing.'"
Noua Dreaptă has organized protests against the project where people
have chanted, "Romania is not a Turkish province."

Critics say the large size of the mosque is out of proportion to the
small size of Bucharest's Muslim population. The 13,000 square meter
(140,000 square foot) project, to be situated
near the Romexpo trade fair grounds, includes a mosque for 2,000
worshippers, a Koran school, a library and a recreational center.

Bucharest is home to around 9,000 Muslims who are being served by ten
mosques scattered throughout the city. The Muslim population of Romania
is 65,000, or less than one percent of the country's population of 19.5
million. Most are ethnic Turks and Tatars living in the Dobrogea region
of eastern Romania.

"It is a bit surprising, building such a big mosque in a
country where the number of Muslims is very small. This is just a sign
of Turkey's neo-Ottoman policy, which is designed to promote its
economic and political interests all around the Balkans."

Turkey has been on a mega-mosque building spree
across the Balkans and Eastern Europe as part of an effort by Ankara to
expand its influence — and its brand of Islam — in the region.

In interviews
with Balkan specialist Michael Bird, several observers said that
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's international mosque-building
program is part of a plan to project Turkey as the pre-eminent Muslim
nation.

"Ultimately every mosque abroad with a Turkish brand name seems to
contribute to the discourse of Turkey as a leading Islamic power," said Kerem Oktem, Professor of Modern Turkey at the University of Graz.

Ozgur Kazim Kivanc, an activist opposed to Erdoğan's destruction of public commons to build mosques, added:

"The Roman Empire used to build temples on the places
they took over to remind people of their conquest. We believe the
instinct is the same. Places of worship are not compulsory for a belief
system to spread — especially in Islam. This plan is not about worship,
it is about marking the territory of their authority through a
monument."

Former Romanian President Traian Basescu worries that the Bucharest
mosque could fuel Islamic extremism in the country. He has said the
mosque project is "irresponsible" and a threat to national security. On
Facebook he wrote:

"Perhaps you cannot imagine a subway station in
Bucharest, during rush hour, where a young man would blow himself up in
the name of Allah. Or perhaps your intelligence cannot help you imagine
young Romanians who have failed in life being sent off to training camps
in Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan and brought back to Europe in order to
bring us the benefits of the Islamic State."

Islamic State has repeatedly stated
that Romania and other parts of Eastern Europe and the Balkans are part
of its "pan-Islamic Caliphate." Omar Bakri Muhammad, a prominent Sunni
Islamist cleric who has recruited British jihadis for Islamic State, has alleged that Romania is Islamic territory. In an interview with the Bulgarian daily 24 Chasa (24 Hours), he said:

"Once Islam enters a land, that land becomes Islamic and
Muslims have the duty to liberate it someday. Spain, for example, is
Islamic land, and so is Eastern Europe: Romania, Albania, Macedonia,
Serbia, Kosovo and Bosnia..."

Basescu has also said he believes the mosque — the first
purpose-built mosque in the Romanian capital (the existing places of
Muslim worship in the city are buildings converted into mosques or
prayer rooms) — is not actually meant for Bucharest's Muslim population,
but for Muslim migrants who will arrive in the years ahead.

During a visit to Romania in April 2015, President Erdoğan said the mosque will be the "the most beautiful expression of dialogue and solidarity between the two countries."

A Romanian Muslim leader, however, expressed
skepticism about Turkey's intentions. "We heard about it on TV, like
everyone else," he said. "We are Romanian Muslims, but now the Turkish
are coming and they get the land. When they complete the building, they
won't even allow us there. So we are sold, thrown out."

During an official visit to Turkey in March 2016, Romanian President
Klaus Iohannis tried to reassure Erdoğan that the mosque project is
moving forward, despite mounting opposition at home. Commenting on the
trip, the daily România Liberăwrote:

"Apparently Iohannis demanded nothing but a measly
Orthodox chapel that will probably be built somewhere on the outskirts
of Istanbul in exchange for the construction of the mosque.... Erdoğan
has inherited from the Ottomans the skill of making his guests feel more
important than they are. ... Iohannis was welcomed with a military
ceremony including the firing of 21 cannon salvoes which only sultans
offer their guests. ... In the end, however, Erdoğan will despise him
for letting himself be tricked and making it so easy for him to turn the
president of an EU state into a vassal of his court."

Some Romanian politicians are now calling for a referendum on the mosque. More than 90% of the public is opposed to the project, according to an online survey conducted by the mainstream newspaper Gândul.

Meanwhile, the pending lawsuit calls on the court to annul the
government's grant of free city land for the mosque project. The lawsuit
states:

"We consider the disposal of free land which, ironically,
belonged to the family of Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu, who was
beheaded by the Turks on August 15, 1714, to be a betrayal of the
Romanian people. In the current context in which all of Europe is being
brought to its knees by terrorist attacks by Muslim extremists, we are
entitled to fear the establishment of Islamic learning schools. We
believe the Romanian state is unable to ensure the security of its
citizens, and approving a mega-mosque in Romania could set a precedent
with unintended catastrophic consequences."

Soeren Kern is a Senior Fellow at the New York-based Gatestone Institute.
He is also Senior Fellow for European Politics at the Madrid-based
Grupo de Estudios Estratégicos / Strategic Studies Group. Follow him on Facebook and on Twitter.

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9122/romania-mega-mosque Follow Middle East and Terrorism on TwitterCopyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.